The guidelines set maximum calorie and sodium limits for meals and require that foods have no trans fats, that milk be low-fat or fat-free and that breads, buns and cereals be whole grain.

Schools also would have to serve one fruit and one vegetable every day at lunch and the portions must be larger. A minimum number of leafy green vegetables, red-orange vegetables, starchy vegetables and legumes also must be served each week.

“We’ve been working on these kind of changes for probably the last 13 years,” said Brant Russell, JPS food service director. “We met their requirements for serving green and red-orange vegetables years ago. But this is a step in the right direction for everyone.”

JPS’ effort has been led by the district’s coordinated school health team, which formed in 2007, Russell said.

Schools already have been serving 1-percent fat white milk and fat-free chocolate milk, as well as whole wheat pizza crusts. Some pizza crusts the district uses also contain soy, which keeps up the meal’s protein level while reducing fat by allowing smaller portions of cheese, Russell said.

Students also have four fresh vegetables and one canned and one fresh fruit every day. That’s supported in part by the district’s fresh food grant that serves Bennett, Cascades, Frost, Hunt, McCulloch and Northeast elementary schools, Russell said.

The biggest challenge, Russell said, has been reducing sodium, partly because of its levels in canned foods provided by the USDA.

“They are making changes,” Russell said. “But we use frozen vegetables as much as we can. They’re fresher and their not steamed in a can for a long time and they don’t have sodium.”

The initial draft of the department’s guidelines, released a year ago, would have prevented tomato paste from being a vegetable. Congress blocked that and also stopped the USDA from limiting the servings of potatoes to two a week. The final rule to be announced Wednesday will have to incorporate those directions from Congress.

The federal government will give schools an additional 6 cents a lunch to meet the standards. The cost of preparing these healthier meals will increase by an estimated 11 cents and breakfasts will cost 28 cents more, the USDA said.

The USDA also said that 32 million children nationwide eat school lunches every day and almost 11 million eat breakfast.